The greatest enemy of a vampire is boredom. Four centuries of existence have taught Lord Morgan Gabriel D'Arcy to fear nothing and no one. Humans and their weapons have little chance against his preternatural speed and arcane powers. Vampires are viral mutations of human DNA. Still, the Vampyre code requires secrecy, and he has learned to hide his nature from the world. The lure of mortality, of a life in the sun, puts Morgan again and again at the mercy of calculating human women though they fail to consider his charm and determination into the equation. However, even grooming a future bride from infancy proves to be fraught with heartbreak. And second chances are not always what they seem unless... you are Morgan. Immortality and beauty, aren’t they grand?

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I thoroughly enjoyed this compilation of four Morgan D’Arcy adventures. And I say this as one who normally doesn’t read vampire fiction or paranormal romance. But Morgan D'Arcy: A Vampyre Rhapsody is completely accessible, literary, and insightful and to me works on more levels than just paranormal romance. The author has fleshed out Morgan’s character in these stories, which could also be considered novelettes or novellas, and the book as a whole reads like an integrated four-part novel. While Morgan is a vampire, and while rational society would consider him a psychopath, he’s also a loveable and even compassionate genius whose sensuous urges and bloodthirsty needs somehow come across as being all too human. The book has an undertone of philosophical reflection on what it means to be human, a trait shared by two other of the author’s Morgan books I’ve reviewed, the novels Sinner’s Opera and Sinner’s Obsession.

The book’s strong eroticism is handled exactly right, fully describing the characters’ motivations, sensuality, and animal instincts, and it solidifies this well-developed world. I especially enjoy the modern settings and concerns, even as Morgan’s long experience since the mid-seventeenth century is always a subtheme.

There are even some speculative fiction aspects which further amplify Morgan’s world, such as the investigation about genetic causes of the vampire species, possible reversals or improvements to DNA, and a solution to Morgan’s yearning to simply exist outside on a sunny day.

I haven't read many vampire books. But something in the description spoke to me. This book was a crazy ride, that's for sure. A collection of four stories Devil’s Waltz, Sunrise Sunset, Night Moves and Intermezzo having a character that links them all - Morgan D’Arcy, vampire. Morgan is a complicated creature. A vampire who loves to play the piano and craves to become mortal again.

Vampires are no longer monsters, but fine seducers, purveyors of passion.

Excellent read! The author created a story that captured and held my mind. My interest held, never wavering while my inquisitive nature wouldn't let me put this book down till I reached the last page.

The characters just come to life on the page. Dr. Amber Wolfe, scientist and temptress, will pay a too dear price for her wish to be like Morgan, immortal

Fiona Allman. dark-haired minx who offers Morgan a day in the sun in exchange for murdering a man.

Sheila the thin waif earning her living as a prostitute but proves a real surprise for him and Ellen Amesworth are his partners in each chapter. I enjoyed all stories, but I must admit I went back and reread paragraphs from Sunset Sunrise.

I am being vague on purpose. I don't want to take from your enjoyment, so you'll have to discover all this on your own. So what are you waiting for? If you haven't read this book yet, go do it now!

This book is rich and sophisticated. The language of the book evokes images of days gone by and love won and lost. I love how Morgan struggles with his immortality, taking chances and going against his own kind to reverse his "mutation." It makes you ache for the pain that a vampyre feels when time passes and he remains. To fall in love with an immortal would be fraught with heartache and terror. And the immortal who loves you? His time is endless and you are but a blip in his seemingly never ending existence. Soulful and sensual, give this series a read!

Morgan D’Arcy is an English nobleman, a concert pianist…and a vampire…

Some readers may remember meeting the handsome Lord D’Arcy in my reviews of the novels Sinner’s Opera and Cardinal Desires. This time around, the man described by one character as having a face belonging in the Sistine Chapel and his soul in Hell, recounts several episodes in his Undead existence . . .

As always, the character of Morgan himself is a deeply conflicted one. In human form, he’s charming and witty; in vampyre mode, he’s blunt and ruthless but at the same time ambiguously hesitant to kill those to whom he’s grown fond.

“I am not a monster. Not a living corpse. I’m a mutation. A blood-borne pathogen altered my DNA but I do drink blood . . . “

His blatant sexuality is always at the fore though he readily admits he doesn’t love anyone. At the same time, he’s secretly looking for that specific someone . . . to love him in spite of what he is . . . the one woman to whom he’ll give the gift of immortality so she may travel the centuries with him. Through his story runs that single thread . . . Morgan may find a woman but he always loses her, because she isn’t the right one.

Author Nightingale’s writing has a lyrical quality, darkly poetic in some aspects, but always descriptive and entertaining. She has a way with words bordering on the style of Oscar Wilde, teetering on the epigram, bon mots with a deeply sensual attitude.

Though her other novels were delights to read, Morgan D’Arcy: A Vampyre Rhapsody is the best to date, a tour de force of luscious description and elegant passages. Her own particular take on the vampire genre is an original idea embellished by descriptive prose.

Lovers of paranormal romance will enjoy this book as much for the subject matter as for the lush imagery the writing evokes.

This novel was supplied by the publisher and no remuneration was involved in the writing of this review.This review is an excerpt from the full-length one written for the New York Journal of Books.